British teacher held in Sudan for calling teddy bear 'Mohammed' could be jailed for sedition | Daily Mail Online British teacher held in Sudan for calling teddy bear 'Mohammed' could be jailed for sedition Last updated at 19:47 27 November 2007 British officials were today battling to free a British schoolteacher imprisoned in Sudan after letting her pupils name a teddy bear Mohammed. Gillian Gibbons was facing a second day of interrogation after being grilled for five hours yesterday. She has now been moved from a local police station in Khartoum to the headquarters of the country's criminal investigation department for questioning by English-speaking officers. Scroll down for more ... The 54-year-old, who has been detained on suspicion of insulting the prophet, faces up to 40 lashes or six months in jail. But there was specualtion today that the British woman could be charged with sedition, a far more serious charge than insulting Muslims, which carries a more severe sentence. When the mother-of-two was arrested on Sunday an angry mob, chanting death threats, gathered outside her lodgings at Unity High School as she was led away by police.

But teachers at the fee-paying school, about a mile from the river Nile, have defended their colleague saying she made an innocent mistake. Mrs Gibbons's arrest follows an exercise begun in September in which she requested a girl bring a bear to school and then asked the class to name it. Twenty out of 23 children, aged six and seven, voted to call the bear Mohammed, from a shortlist of eight names including Abdullah and Hassan. Each child was allowed to take the teddy home at weekends and write a diary about what each did with it. One of the seven-year-old pupils in her class said he had chosen to call the teddy bear Mohammad because it was his own name. Scroll down for more ... The children wrote entries in a book with a picture of the teddy on the front and captioned "My name is Mohammed". The child said: "Some people took the teddy home and took it places with them like the swimming pool." The book has now been seized by Sudanese police. Mrs Gibbons is facing charges under sharia law for "insulting ideology and religion". The incident risks sparking a major diplomatic row similar to that triggered when cartoons of the prophet appeared in Danish newspapers last year.

Mrs Gibbons, from the Aigburth suburb of Liverpool, moved to Sudan this summer, leaving her post as a deputy headteacher at Dovecot Primary School. She left following the break-up of her marriage after more than 20 years to Peter Gibbons, a headmaster in Liverpool. The couple have two children, John and Jessica. Former colleagues and neighbours spoke of their shock and described Ms Gibbons as somebody who "wouldn't harm a fly". A source close to the school in Sudan, which has been closed until January for fear of reprisals, said one teacher was angered by the naming of the bear and complained to the head. Another report suggested several parents had made complaints. Scroll down for more... Unity is an independent school for Christian and Muslim children and is governed by a board representing major Christian denominations. Mrs Gibbons has been visited in her cell by British consular staff and colleagues bringing food and water. Robert Boulos, the school's director, said: "She is in very high spirits and is being treated well." However, he added: "This is a sensitive issue. We are very worried about her safety. This was an innocent mistake.

Mrs Gibbons would have never wanted to insult Islam." Sudan has been heavily criticised by Gordon Brown for its role in the mass killings of refugees in its Darfur region and there will be speculation that Khartoum is hitting back. The British Embassy was immediately involved in the case. A Muslim teacher at the school, who has a child in Mrs Gibbons's class, said she had not found the project offensive. Scroll down for more... "I had no problem with it at all," the teacher said. "I know Gillian and she would never have meant it as an insult. I was just impressed that she got them to vote." Yesterday Robert Boulos, the school's director, said the Sheffield-born teacher was guilty of nothing but an innocent mistake. "We have lost one of our best teachers. She was maybe a little naive but she really had no idea what she was doing," he said. "No parents or teachers complained because they knew she had no bad intentions.

She has done nothing wrong but now we are very concerned that there's a risk to the school and the students from the men in the street." However, in an arabic statement sent to More4 News last night, Unity High School announced that Mrs Gibbons' employment with the school was being terminated with immediate effect. "The administration of Unity High School would like to proffer an official apology to all students and their families and to all Muslims for what was an individual action, which does not represent the sentiments of the administration or the school," it read. Earlier a pupil from the school, who did not wish to be named, contacted the Daily Mail to speak up for Mrs Gibbons. "She's a lovely teacher and I don't think she deserves any of this because the students are the ones who chose the name, not her. Scroll down for more... "The teddy bear is not a symbol of anything bad and I'm sure that she did not mean any harm. I hope she's okay and we should all pray that Allah helps her." One mother, whose seven-year-old son hosted the bear for a weekend, said her family had not been offended by the name. "Our Prophet Mohammed tells us to be forgiving," she said. "So she should be released.

She didn't mean any of this at all. I know Gillian and she would never have meant it as an insult." Unity High, founded in 1902, is governed by a board representing major Christian denominations in Sudan, but teaches both Christians and Muslims aged 4 to 18. Many of its teachers are exiles from the British education system. Sharia law was introduced there in 1983 and the country's religious leaders hosted Osama bin Laden during the 1990s. Sudanese women must cover their heads and alcohol is banned. Mrs Gibbons had spent her career working in primary schools in and around Liverpool as a supply teacher and then as a literacy adviser. She was deputy head at the Dovecot primary school in the city from 2002 until July this year. She previously worked at the Garston Church of England school. She arrived in Khartoum in August. She separated from her headmaster husband Peter last year after 32 years of marriage. On her Friends Reunited website entry she describes herself as a "free agent" and tells of plans to live and work abroad, adding: "Unfortunately, after being married for 32 years I am getting divorced.

Shocked? Not half as much as I was!" The couple have two children, Jessica, 27, and John, 25. Neither they nor her estranged husband would comment on the news from Khartoum. Louise Ellman, Labour MP for Liverpool Riverside, called for Mrs Gibbons to be released, saying: "I hope that the Foreign Office will do everything they can to calm the situation. I will be giving every assistance I can." Hassan Aberdeen, a researcher at the Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies, said the case might be linked to British colonial rule in the country, which ended in 1955. "Sudan has gone through a great deal of turmoil. There was an Islamic revolution and the British quashed it. "Sudan has a very harsh memory of British treatment, and the recollection of that is probably causing part of the problem." Bishop Ezekiel Kondo, chairman of the school council, said that the school was in dispute with the authorities over taxes, and Mrs Gibbons may have been caught up in that dispute. • PERILS OF 'INSULTING' THE PROPHET Mohammed is the central role model for Muslims.

He is seen as the ideal husband, father and friend, as well as the ultimate political leader, general, diplomat and judge. The perception that he has been insulted, whether by writers, artists or cartoonists, has frequently caused outrage. The most famous case involved British-born novelist Salman Rushdie, who was issued with a death sentence, or fatwa, by Iran's Ayatollah Khomeini after his 1988 novel The Satanic Verses. Cartoons depicting Mohammed published in a Danish newspaper in 2005 provoked a violent backlash in many Muslim countries. Western embassies in Syria, Lebanon, Indonesia and Iran were attacked. Muslims believe that neither Allah nor Mohammed can be captured in an image by human kind. To attempt such a thing is seen as an insult in itself. There is no specific or explicit ban in the Koran. But chapter 42, verse 11 does say: "[Allah is] the originator of the heavens and the earth [there is] nothing like a likeness of Him." Since President Bush's war on terror, which some Muslims have interpreted as an attack on Islam, fundamentalists have been quick to see an insult where none is intended.

BBC NEWS | Africa | 'Muhammad' teddy teacher arrested 'Muhammad' teddy teacher arrested Gillian Gibbons is described as "a talented and able teacher " A British schoolteacher has been arrested in Sudan accused of insulting Islam's Prophet, after she allowed her pupils to name a teddy bear Muhammad. Colleagues of Gillian Gibbons, 54, from Liverpool, said she made an "innocent mistake" by letting the six and seven-year-olds choose the name. Ms Gibbons was arrested after several parents made complaints. The BBC has learned the charge could lead to six months in jail, 40 lashes or a fine. Officials from the British embassy in Khartoum are expected to visit Ms Gibbons in custody. "We are in contact with the authorities here and they have visited the teacher and she is in a good condition," an embassy spokesman said. The spokesman said the naming of the teddy happened months ago and was chosen by the children because it is a common name in the country. "This happened in September and the parents did not have a problem with it," he said. 'Very sensitive' The school has been closed until January for fear of reprisals.

Fellow teachers at Khartoum's Unity High School told Reuters news agency they feared for Ms Gibbons' safety after receiving reports that men had started gathering outside the police station where she was being held. The school's director, Robert Boulos, said: "This is a very sensitive issue. We are very worried about her safety. They came up with eight names including Abdullah, Hassan and Muhammad Robert Boulos Director of Unity High School "This was a completely innocent mistake. Miss Gibbons would have never wanted to insult Islam." Mr Boulos said Ms Gibbons was following a British national curriculum course designed to teach young pupils about animals and this year's topic was the bear. Ms Gibbons, who joined the school in August, asked a seven-year-old girl to bring in her teddy bear and asked the class to pick names for it, he said. "They came up with eight names including Abdullah, Hassan and Muhammad," Mr Boulos said, adding that she then had the children vote on a name. Twenty out of the 23 children chose Muhammad as their favourite name. Mr Boulos said each child was then allowed to take the bear home at weekends and told to write a diary about what they did with it.

He said the children's entries were collected in a book with a picture of the bear on the cover and a message which read, "My name is Muhammad." Book seized The bear itself was not marked or labelled with the name in any way, he added. It is seen as an insult to Islam to attempt to make an image of the Prophet Muhammad. Mr Boulos said Ms Gibbons was arrested on Sunday at her home inside the school premises after a number of parents complained to Sudan's Ministry of Education. I know Gillian and she would never have meant it as an insult. I was just impressed that she got them to vote Muslim colleague in Sudan He said police had seized the book and asked to interview the girl who owned the bear. The country's state-controlled Sudanese Media Centre reported that charges were being prepared "under article 125 of the criminal law" which covers insults against faith and religion. No-one at the ministries of education or justice was available for comment. Mr Boulos told the BBC he was confident she would not face a jail sentence. One Muslim teacher at the independent school for Christian and Muslim children, who has a child in Ms Gibbons' class, said she had not found the project offensive.

"I know Gillian and she would never have meant it as an insult. I was just impressed that she got them to vote," the teacher said. In Liverpool, a family spokeswoman said Ms Gibbons' grown children, John and Jessica - both believed to be in their 20s - were not commenting on her arrest. Gillian Gibbons had been working in Khartoum since August "I have spoken with her children and they do not want to say anything and aggravate the situation over there," she said. Rick Widdowson the headteacher of Garston Church of England Primary School, where Gillian worked for ten years, added: "We are an Anglican school and I know for a fact that Gillian would not do anything to offend followers of any faith. "Certainly she is also very worldly wise and she is obviously aware of the sensitivities around Islam." Cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammad printed in several European newspapers sparked violent protests around the world in 2006.

The Blasphemous Teddy Bear - TIME The Blasphemous Teddy Bear Send to Kindle Left; Fernando Bengoechea / Beateworks / Corbis: Reuters British primary school teacher Gillian Gibbons has been arrested in Sudan, accused of insulting Islam's Prophet by letting her class of 7-year-olds name a teddy bear Mohammed. Follow @TIME It probably seemed like the most innocent of ideas to the newly arrived teacher from England, still settling into life in the Sudanese capital Khartoum. She asked her class of six- and seven-year-olds to dress up and name a teddy bear, and keep a diary of his outings. She hoped it would provide material for projects for the rest of the year. And it might have, except for the name the children chose for their bear: Muhammad. Now Gillian Gibbons, 54, is spending her second night in a Sudanese prison, accused of insulting Islam's Prophet. She faces a public lashing or up to six months in prison if found guilty on charges of blasphemy. And Unity High School  one of a number of exclusive British-run schools in the Sudanese capital  has been closed as staff fear reprisals from Islamic extremists.

Robert Boulos, the school's director, said the incident had been blown out of all proportion, but added that the school would remain closed until January to let ill feelings blow over. "This was a completely innocent mistake," he said in an office decorated with sepia photographs dating back to the school's colonial heyday. "Miss Gibbons would have never wanted to insult Islam." Police raided the school, where Gibbons also lives, on Sunday. "We tried to reason with them but we felt they were coming under strong pressure from Islamic courts," said Boulos. "There were men with big beards asking where she was and saying they wanted to kill her." A similar angry crowd had gathered by the time she arrived at the Khartoum police station where she is being held. Unity, founded early in the last century, is one of several British schools run along Christian lines in an overwhelmingly Muslim country. Its high brick walls shut out the dust of everyday Sudanese life, transporting the visitor into the shady courtyard of an Oxbridge college or English private school. Many of its pupils come from well-to-do Sudanese families keen for their children to get the best education that money can buy. But Sudan is ruled by religious conservatives.

Sharia law was introduced in 1991; alcohol is banned and women must wear headscarves. Convicted criminals are routinely flogged or executed. The bizarre turn of events that led to the teacher's arrest began in September, soon after she arrived in the country, according to colleagues who have rallied in her support. Her young class was due to study the behavior and habitat of bears, so she suggested that pupils bring in a teddy bear to serve as a case study. A seven-year-old girl brought in her favorite cuddly toy and the rest of the class was invited to name him. After considering the names Hassan and Abdullah, they voted overwhelmingly in favor of Muhammad  the first name of the most popular boy in the class. "No parents or teachers complained because they knew she had no bad intention," said Boulos. Until last week. Parents from another class raised concerns with the school. Then Sudan's feared police came calling at the weekend. Gibbons' colleagues said they feared a disgruntled member of staff may be using the issue to cause trouble. Bishop Ezikiel Kondo, chairman of the school council, said: "The thing may be very simple, but they just may make it bigger.

It's a kind of blackmail." Khartoum has exploded with anger at accusations of blasphemy in the past. Last year angry demonstrators denounced cartoons of the Prophet that appeared in Danish newspapers. And there have been protests at the actions of Zoe's Ark, a French charity accused of trying to smuggle children out of neighboring Chad. Now everyone is waiting to see whether religious leaders or politicians will take their supporters onto the streets this time. Most parents arriving at the school gates were supportive of the British teacher. One mother, whose seven-year-old son was in Gibbons' class, said her family had not been offended by the name. "Our Prophet Muhammad tells us to be forgiving," she said. "So she should be released. She didn't mean any of this at all." Teacher arrested for calling teddy bear 'Mohammed' | Metro News Teacher arrested for calling teddy bear ‘Mohammed’ metrowebukmetro Monday 26 Nov 2007 12:16 pm Gillian Gibbons A British teacher has been arrested in Sudan for letting her children name a teddy bear Mohammed, the British Embassy said today. Gillian Gibbons, 54, from Liverpool, was detained yesterday on suspicion of insulting Islam’s prophet.

The teacher let her class of seven years olds choose the name as part of a school project. A Foreign Office spokeswoman said: ‘We can confirm a British national was arrested by police in Sudan yesterday. We are providing consular assistance.’ Teachers at Unity High School in central Khartoum said Gibbons made an innocent mistake and simply let her pupils choose their favourite name for the toy as part of a school project. Police arrested Gibbons on Sunday at her home inside the school premises, said Unity director Robert Boulos, after a number of parents made a complaint to Sudan’s Ministry of Education. Boulos said she had since been charged with ‘blasphemy’, an offence he said was punishable with up to three months in prison, 40 lashes or a fine. Boulos said Gibbons was following a British National Curriculum course designed to teach young pupils about animals and their habitats. This year’s animal was the bear. Gibbons, who joined Unity in August, asked a girl to bring in her teddy bear to help the Year 2 class focus, said Boulos. The teacher then asked the class to name the toy. ‘They came up with eight names including Abdullah, Hassan and Mohammed.

Then she explained what it meant to vote and asked them to choose the name.’ Twenty out of the 23 children chose Mohammed. Each child was allowed to take the bear home at weekends and asked to write a diary about what they did with the toy. Each entry was collected in a book with a picture of the bear on the cover, next to the message ‘My name is Mohammed,’ said Boulos. The bear itself was not marked or labelled with the name in any way, he added, saying Sudanese police had now seized the book and had asked to interview the 7-year-old girl. Boulos said the first he knew about the course was last week when he got a phone call from the Ministry of Education, saying a number of Muslim parents had made formal complaints. One Muslim teacher at Unity, who also has a child in Gibbons’ class, said she had not found the project offensive. ‘I had no problem with it at all,’ the teacher said. ‘I know Gillian and she would never have meant it as an insult.

I was just impressed that she got them to vote.’ More Sudan protesters: Execute teacher - CNN.com Sudan protesters: Execute teacher Some demonstrators demand execution of Gillian Gibbons, 54 Gibbons found guilty of insulting religion, sentenced to 15 days in jail Teacher arrested after her class named teddy bear "Mohammed" KHARTOUM, Sudan (CNN) -- Hundreds of angry protesters, some waving ceremonial swords from trucks equipped with loud speakers, gathered Friday outside the presidential palace to denounce a teacher whose class named a teddy bear "Mohammed" -- some calling for her execution. An undated amateur photo of Gillian Gibbons, who has been found guilty of insulting religion. The protesters, which witnesses said numbered close to 1,000, swore to fight in the name of their prophet. Gillian Gibbons, 54, was given 15 days in jail late Thursday after she was convicted of insulting religion. She was cleared of charges of inciting hatred and showing contempt for religious beliefs, her lawyer, Ali Ajeb, said. Ajeb said they planned to appeal the sentence, which begins from the date she was detained, Nov. 25.

Including Friday, she has 10 more days in jail. British Foreign Secretary David Miliband said he was "extremely disappointed" that the charges were not dismissed. Meanwhile senior British lawmakers were en route to Khartoum to try to secure Gibbons' early release. The two members of the House of Lords were set to arrive in Khartoum about 5 a.m. Saturday (9 p.m. Friday ET), Time magazine reporter Sam Dealey told CNN, citing British and Sudanese sources. They will meet with government ministers and Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir, he said. Sources close to the British government and the Republican Palace in Sudan say it is expected that a deal will be reached, and Gibbons will be released, Dealey said. Visas for the two, he said, were granted "in record time ... by Sudanese standards." Friday's demonstrations began as worshippers spilled out of mosques in the capital after Friday prayers. They marched to the palace, which is on the same street as Unity High School, where Gibbons taught grade school students. Those who named the bear were 7 years old. A heavy police presence was maintained outside the school, but no demonstrators were there.

Watch men brandish knives, shout » Armed with swords and sticks, the protesters shouted: "By soul, by blood, I will fight for the Prophet Mohammad." Western journalists who attempted to talk to the protesters were ushered away by men in plain clothes. Gibbons is being held in a women's prison in the Omdurman district of Khartoum, and she will be deported at the end of her prison term, British consular officials told CNN. British Embassy staff said they were giving the teacher -- from the northern British city of Liverpool -- full consular assistance. In leaflets distributed earlier this week by Muslim groups, the protesters promised a "popular release of anger" at Friday's protests. The leaflets condemned Gibbons as an "infidel" and accused her of "the pollution of children's mentality" by her actions. Omer Mohammed Ahmed Siddig, the Sudanese ambassador to Britain, was summoned for a second time to meet with the British foreign secretary late Thursday after the court's ruling. Miliband also spoke to the Sudanese acting foreign minister for 15 minutes on the telephone during the meeting, the British Foreign Office said. "Our priority now is to ensure Ms.

Gibbons' welfare and we will continue to provide consular assistance to her," Miliband said in a statement. The Foreign Office said there would be further talks with the Sudanese government Friday. Gibbons was arrested Sunday after she asked her class to name the stuffed animal as part of a school project, the Foreign Office said. She had faced charges under Article 125 of Sudan's constitution, the law relating to insulting religion and inciting hatred. She could have received a sentence of 40 lashes, a fine or jail term of up to a year, according to the Foreign Office. British newspapers condemned Gibbons' conviction, with the Daily Telegraph calling for the recall of the British ambassador from Khartoum and sanctions against the heads of the Sudanese government. In an editorial, the tabloid newspaper, The Sun, said Gibbons' jailing was a "grotesque insult to Islam" and called Gibbons "an innocent abroad." Don't Miss TIME.com: The blasphemous teddy bear Web site: Unity High School Four vans filled with riot police were waiting outside the courthouse at Thursday's hearing, but there were no disturbances. Staff from Gibbons' school, including director Robert Boulos, were present.

Defense counsel later confirmed that the complaint against Gibbons came from Sarah Khawad, a secretary at the school. Gibbons has been working at the school, popular with wealthy Sudanese and expatriates, since August, after leaving her position as deputy head teacher at a primary school in Liverpool this summer, Boulos said. He said Gibbons asked the children to pick their favorite name for the new class mascot, which she was using to aid lessons about animals and their habitats. E-mail to a friend British teacher convicted of insulting Islam in Sudan - Wikinews, the free news source British teacher convicted of insulting Islam in Sudan From Wikinews, the free news source you can write! Jump to: navigation , search Friday, November 30, 2007 Gillian Gibbons, the British teacher arrested in Sudan on Sunday for naming a teddy bear Muhammad , was charged on Wednesday, and tried, convicted, and sentenced yesterday to 15 days imprisonment for "insulting religion." The 54-year-old mother of two avoided a possible 40 lashes, but will be deported at the end of her sentence, which will run from the date of her arrest.

Following the speedy trial, British Foreign Secretary David Miliband summoned Sudanese ambassador Omer Siddig to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office to explain the verdict. During the 45 minute meeting Mr Miliband expressed "in the strongest terms" the government's concern at the sentence, and spoke by telephone to the Sudanese acting foreign minister. The trial According to early reports, parents had complained that Ms Gibbons had insulted the Prophet Muhammad , but when she was charged on Wednesday, this was revealed to be false. It was Sara Khawad, a secretary at the Unity High School where Ms Gibbons taught, who had complained to the Education Ministry and provoked Ms Gibbons' arrest last weekend. Early Thursday morning, as vehicles filled with riot police watched the area and the press and colleagues of Ms Gibbons were denied access to the criminal courthouse in Khartoum, the trial got underway. The head of her legal team, Kamal Djizouri, was also denied access for a time. Ms Khawad was one of four witnesses from the prosecution. Also testifying against Ms Gibbons was an accountant from the school. Gillian Gibbons wept as she testified that she never wanted to insult Islam .

She had allowed her six and seven year old pupils to vote on the name for a teddy bear that was part of a class project. The children had voted by 20 votes to 3 to name the bear Muhammad. At the end of a seven-hour trial, the court found her guilty of "insulting the faith of Muslims". The Judge, Mohammed Youssef, rejected prosecution calls for a harsher sentence on the charge of "inciting religious hatred", which carries a punishment of up to 40 lashes, six months in prison and a fine. After the trial, Ms Gibbons was taken to the crowded women's prison in Omdurman to begin the remaining 11 days of her sentence. Although the prison is more comfortable than many in Sudan, conditions are not good, and Ms Gibbons will have to rely on wellwishers to supply her with food and water. An appeal against the sentence is expected. Reactions in Sudan The Assembly of the Ulemas, a body of Islamic clerics, said on Wednesday that Ms Gibbon's action was "another ring in the circles of plotting against Islam", and called for the harshest penalties to be applied.

After Ms Gibbons was charged, a pickup truck drove through the Sudanese capital calling for protests against the alleged insult. Some members of Ms Gibbons' defense team reported receiving death threats. The authorities quickly scheduled the trial, and issued instructions to clerics not to deliver inflammatory sermons at Friday prayers about the case or against foreigners. Major General Abdeen al-Tahir of the Khartoum police stated that protests would not be permitted. After the trial, Ms Gibbons' chief lawyer described the verdict as "not bad", and her colleagues expressed relief that the sentence was not harsher. The lawyer stated that the complaint was an act of revenge. Isam Abu Hasabu, director of the school's Parent-Teacher Association, claimed Khawad had been arguing with the principal before the incident. The school, which according to press reports has issued a public apology and sacked Ms Gibbons, has been closed for security reasons since her arrest. The director said he was happy with the verdict: "It is fair.

There were a lot of political pressures and ­attention." Omar El Faroug Hassan Shumena, a legal consultant in Khartoum, said that he believed the judge had concluded the trial in a single day to reduce the chance of disorder after Friday Prayers. International reaction Catherine Wolthuizen, chief executive of Fair Trials International, said Mrs Gibbons' punishment was still "harsh". She said: "It was a very speedy justice process. After Ms Gibbons was charged, the Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) stated that they were appalled at the decision and called on the Sudanese President, Omar al-Bashir , to intervene to secure Ms Gibbons' release. After the sentence, they further stated: "This case should have required only simple common sense to resolve. It is unfortunate that the Sudanese authorities were found wanting in this most basic of qualities. They grossly overreacted in this sad affair and this episode. Gillian should never have been arrested, let alone charged and convicted of committing a crime. We hope that Gillian will be able to return home without much further delay." Ibrahim Mogra, also of the MCB, stated: "I'm utterly disappointed with this decision...

The question that I would want the judiciary there and the authorities to ponder over is: How does this help the cause of Islam? What kind of message and image are we portraying about our religion and our culture?" Mike Blakemore of Amnesty International said: "The sentence is a mockery of justice and Amnesty International consider Gillian to be a prisoner of conscience. She should be immediately and unconditionally released." Dr Rowan Williams , Archbishop of Canterbury , said: "I can't see any justification for this at all. I think that this is an absurdly disproportionate response to what is at best a minor cultural faux pas. And I think that it's done the Sudanese government no credit whatever." According to the BBC, the press in Sudan and the Middle East have largely ignored the case, but bloggers from Sudan have heaped scorn on the Sudanese authorities. Have an opinion on this story? Share it!

Related news British: Teacher 'in good spirits' in Sudan jail - USATODAY.com War casualties Q&A ON THE TEDDY BEAR CONTROVERSY The conviction of a British teacher for insulting Islam by letting her students name a teddy bear Muhammad has cast a spotlight on the issue of what Muslims consider offensive when it comes to use of the prophet's name. Here are some questions and answers. Q: Why is the name Muhammad significant? A: Muhammad literally means "the praised one," and is the name of the prophet who Muslims consider God's final messenger. Islam's holy book, the Quran, reminds Muslims not to raise their voices when speaking of the prophet and to behave respectfully. Everything about the Prophet Muhammad is beloved and his name is also considered beloved. Q: Is it acceptable to use the name Muhammad in the Muslim world? A: It all depends on the intention. Muslim parents find the name particularly auspicious. It is also acceptable to use the name, for example, as part of a company name, so long as the reference is not to the prophet. Such commercial names are fairly common throughout the Muslim world. Q: So what's the objection to naming the teddy bear?

A: British Muslim organizations have strenuously condemned the Sudanese prosecution of the teacher, Gillian Gibbons, who was sentenced to 15 days in prison. Shaykh Ibrahim Mogra, who chairs the interfaith council of the Muslim Council of Britain, says the Sudanese trial was more political than religious. Gibbons did make a mistake, he says, but it was an innocent one. A Muslim teacher would not have named a teddy bear Muhammad because "they know the score with the name," Mogra said, adding that such stuffed toys were largely alien to Sudanese culture. "In Britain, there are hardly any children who grew up without a teddy bear," Mogra said. "In the Sudanese culture, the bear is not a cuddly thing. It is seen as vicious, ferocious animal, and when you use the name Muhammad and attach it to a ferocious animal, there is scope there for it to cause (suspicion)." Q: Do some Muslims think the Sudanese court went too far? A: "The school principal should have had a word with her. And that should have been it," said Mohammed Shafiq, spokesman for the Ramadhan Foundation, a British Muslim youth organization.

"What happened in the court's sentencing of her doesn't do international relationships any good ... She did not intend to demonize the Prophet Muhammad." � The Associated Press British: Teacher 'in good spirits' in Sudan jail Posted What's this? KHARTOUM, Sudan (AP)  Visiting British parliament members met Saturday with a British teacher imprisoned in Sudan for allegedly insulting Islam by letting her students name a teddy bear Muhammad and they said she was in good spirits. The two Muslim members of Parliament's upper house also met with Sudanese officials and said afterwards that the government in Khartoum wants to resolve the case. A lawyer for Gillian Gibbons said President Omar al-Bashir could inform the visiting parliamentarians that he had pardoned the teacher. Labour peer Lord Ahmed and Baroness Warsi, a Conservative, arrived in Sudan Saturday on what the British Foreign Office called a private visit to meet with Sudanese officials and seek the release of Gibbons. They visited Gibbons in prison for more than an hour. "Gillian was surprisingly in good spirits considering the last seven days," Warsi told Sky News. Warsi said she and Ahmed met Sudanese officials Saturday morning and more meetings were scheduled later.

"The Sudanese government do want to resolve this matter. ... (We) hope we can come to an amicable resolution soon," she said. Gibbons' lawyer Kamal al-Gizouli said Sudan's president could deliver news of a pardon when he meets the British visitors. But it was not immediately clear when they would meet. "I would not be surprised if president of the republic will tell delegation we have dropped this charge," al-Gizouli told The Associated Press. Gibbons, 54, was sentenced Thursday to 15 days in jail and deportation for insulting Islam by naming a teddy bear Muhammad — the name of Islam's prophet. The naming was part of a class project for her 7-year-old students at a private school in Sudan. Al-Gizouli said only the president has the power to lift Gibbons' 15-day sentence which runs until Dec. 9. Gibbons was moved from the Omdurman women's prison to a secret location on Friday after thousands of Sudanese, many armed with clubs and swords and beating drums, burned pictures of her and demanded her execution.

There was no overt sign that the government organized the protest, but such a rally could not have taken place without at least official assent. The teacher's conviction under Sudan's Islamic Sharia law shocked Britons, and the British government has said it was working with Sudan's regime to win her release. Gibbons escaped harsher punishment that could have included up to 40 lashes, six months in prison and a fine. Her time in jail since her arrest Sunday counts toward the sentence. During her trial, the weeping teacher said she had intended no harm. Her students, overwhelmingly Muslim, chose the name for the bear, and Muhammad is one of the most common names for men in the Arab world. Muslim scholars generally agree that intent is a key factor in determining if someone has violated Islamic rules against insulting the prophet. But the case was caught up in the ideology that al-Bashir's Islamic regime has long instilled in Sudan, a mix of anti-colonialism, religious fundamentalism and a sense that the West is besieging Islam. The uproar comes as the U.N. is accusing Sudan of dragging its feet on the deployment of peacekeepers in the western Sudanese Darfur region. Copyright 2007 The Associated Press.

All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Share this story: British teacher faces 40 lashes over teddy bear's name - Wikinews, the free news source British teacher faces 40 lashes over teddy bear's name From Wikinews, the free news source you can write! Jump to: navigation , search Wednesday, November 28, 2007 A British teacher working in Sudan was arrested on Sunday after parents allegedly complained that she had insulted Islam by naming a teddy bear Muhammad. She faces a possible six months in prison, 40 lashes, or a fine. A blasphemous bear? Gillian Gibbons, 54, who had arrived at Khartoum's Unity High School in August, polled the six and seven year old children in her class on what they should call the bear. Out of 8 names, including Abdullah and Hassan, the children overwhelmingly voted for Muhammad, by 20 votes to 3. The bear was named back in September, as part of a teaching assignment. Each weekend a child would take it home, and write a diary of what they had done with the bear.

These accounts were collected in a book with a picture of the teddy on the front, along with the message "My name is Muhammad". The bear itself was not labeled or marked with the name. On Sunday, November 25, as a group of angry men chanted threats, the police arrested Ms Gibbons at her lodgings in the School. The book has also been seized, and police want to question the bear's 7 year old owner. Since her arrest she has been moved from a local police station to Sudan's Criminal Investigation Department headquarters for interrogation. British consular officials were initially refused permission to see her, but were allowed to leave food and water. Colleagues from the school have however been able to visit, and consular access was eventually provided. The British embassy in Khartoum has not been able to confirm whether the teacher has formally been charged. School reaction Director Robert Boulos has closed the school until January for fear of reprisals. "This is a very sensitive issue," he said. He stressed that there was no deliberate insult: "This was a completely innocent mistake. Miss Gibbons would have never wanted to insult Islam." Mr Boulos was also confident she would not face a jail sentence.

However, in an Arabic statement sent to More4 News last night, Unity High School announced that Mrs Gibbons' employment with the school was being terminated with immediate effect: "The administration of Unity High School would like to proffer an official apology to all students and their families and to all Muslims for what was an individual action, which does not represent the sentiments of the administration or the school." The Sudanese Media Centre, which is linked to the government, reports that that Ms Gibbons' actions had "met with wide condemnation by guardians of the students", but colleagues of Ms Gibbons claimed that no such complaints had been received by any of the children's parents. Legal escalation Sudan's Justice Minister, Mohammed Ali Mardhi, ordered General Prosecutor Salaheddin Abu Zaid to take personal charge of the case. If charged with insulting the Prophet Muhammad , regarded as blasphemy under Sudan's Sharia law, Ms Gibbons faces 40 lashes or six month's imprisonment - but the prosecutor has suggested that more serious charges could follow. He is continuing to question witnesses, and there are unconfirmed reports that blasphemy charges have already been brought, and that charges of sedition are being considered.

International reaction The British Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, expressed sorrow about what has happened to Ms Gibbons, and stated that contacts had been made with the Sudanese government and police to "clarify" the situation. Louise Ellman, Labour MP for Liverpool Riverside, called for the release of Ms Gibbons, stating: "I hope that the Foreign Office will do everything they can to calm the situation. I will be giving every assistance I can." Dr Muhammad Abdul Bari, of the Muslim Council of Britain , said that Ms Gibbons should never have been arrested in the first place, and called on the Sudanese government to intervene in the case with a view to ensuring that she is released without delay. In contrast to official statements within Sudan, the Sudanese Embassy in the UK has downplayed the whole affair, saying that the "minute" issue would soon be resolved. Speculation Some commentators have suggested other contributing factors in this furore: Britain's criticism of the Sudanese government's human rights record in Darfur may have angered the Sudanese authorities. Teachers at the school have suggested that a colleague with a grudge against the school, rather than parents, might be the source for the complaints.

Bishop Ezekiel Kondo, chairman of the school council, suggested that the affair could be related to a tax dispute between the school and the Sudanese authorities. Canadian radio commentators have suggested that the Danish cartoon controversy in 2005 may have increased the Muslim sensitivity to this issue. Have an opinion on this story? Share it! Sources Thousands in Sudan Call for British Teddy Bear Teacher's Execution | Fox News Thousands in Sudan Call for British Teddy Bear Teacher's Execution Published November 30, 2007 Facebook 0 Twitter 0 Email Print KHARTOUM, Sudan – Thousands of Sudanese, many armed with clubs and knives, rallied Friday in a central square and demanded the execution of a British teacher convicted of insulting Islam for allowing her students to name a teddy bear "Muhammad." In response to the demonstration, teacher Gillian Gibbons was moved from the women's prison near Khartoum to a secret location for her safety, her lawyer said. In her first remarks since being detained, Gibbons appealed for tolerance Friday in a conversation with her son. Her son, John, said she appeared to be in good spirits during a telephone call on Friday.

"One of the things my mum said today was that 'I don't want any resentment towards Muslim people,"' John Gibbons told The Associated Press. "She's holding up quite well." The Foreign Office said consular staff had visited Gibbons in prison Friday, and she was in good health. A spokeswoman said British officials were pursuing diplomatic contacts "both in London and in Khartoum and we continue to search for a swift resolution." Officials said Lord Ahmed, a Muslim Labour peer, would travel to Sudan to try to secure Gibbons' release. The Foreign Office said the trip was a private initiative. Click here to view photos. The protesters streamed out of mosques after Friday sermons, as pickup trucks with loudspeakers blared messages against Gibbons, who was sentenced Thursday to 15 days in prison and deportation. She avoided the more serious punishment of 40 lashes. They massed in central Martyrs Square outside the presidential palace, where hundreds of riot police were deployed. They did not try to stop the rally, which lasted about an hour. "Shame, shame on the U.K.," protesters chanted. Calls by FOXNews.com to Sudan's permanent mission to the United Nations were not returned Friday.

The protesters called for Gibbons' execution, saying, "No tolerance: Execution," and "Kill her, kill her by firing squad." Gibbons' chief lawyer, Kamal al-Gizouli, said she was moved from the prison for her safety for the final nine days of her sentence. "They moved this lady from the prison department to put her in other hands and in other places to cover her and wait until she completes her imprisonment period," he said, adding that she was in good health. "They want, by hook or by crook, to complete these nine days without any difficulties, which would have an impact on their foreign relationship," he said. Several hundred protesters, not openly carrying weapons, marched from the square to Unity High School, about a mile away, where Gibbons worked. They chanted slogans outside the school, which is closed and under heavy security, then headed toward the nearby British Embassy. They were stopped by security forces two blocks away from the embassy. The protest arose despite vows by Sudanese security officials the day before, during Gibbons' trial, that threatened demonstrations after Friday prayers would not take place. Some of the protesters carried green banners with the name of the Society for Support of the Prophet Muhammad, a previously unknown group.

Many protesters carried clubs, knives and axes — but not automatic weapons, which some have brandished at past government-condoned demonstrations. That suggested Friday's rally was not organized by the government. A Muslim cleric at Khartoum's main Martyrs Mosque denounced Gibbons during one sermon, saying she intentionally insulted Islam. He did not call for protests, however. "Imprisoning this lady does not satisfy the thirst of Muslims in Sudan. But we welcome imprisonment and expulsion," the cleric, Abdul-Jalil Nazeer al-Karouri, a well-known hard-liner, told worshippers. "This an arrogant woman who came to our country, cashing her salary in dollars, teaching our children hatred of our Prophet Muhammad," he said. Britain, meanwhile, pursued diplomatic moves to free Gibbons. Prime Minister Gordon Brown spoke with a member of her family to convey his regret, his spokeswoman said. "He set out his concern and the fact that we were doing all we could to secure her release," spokeswoman Emily Hands told reporters. Most Britons expressed shock at the verdict by a court in Khartoum, alongside hope it would not raise tensions between Muslims and non-Muslims in Britain. "One of the good things is the U.K.

Muslims who've condemned the charge as completely out of proportion," said Paul Wishart, 37, a student in London. "In the past, people have been a bit upset when different atrocities have happened and there hasn't been much voice in the U.K. Islamic population, whereas with this, they've quickly condemned it." Muhammad Abdul Bari, secretary-general of the Muslim Council of Britain, accused the Sudanese authorities of "gross overreaction." "This case should have required only simple common sense to resolve. It is unfortunate that the Sudanese authorities were found wanting in this most basic of qualities," he said. The Muslim Public Affairs Committee, a political advocacy group, said the prosecution was "abominable and defies common sense." The Federation of Student Islamic Societies, which represents 90,000 Muslim students in Britain and Ireland, called on Sudan's government to free Gibbons, saying she had not meant to cause offense. "We are deeply concerned that the verdict to jail a schoolteacher due to what's likely to be an innocent mistake is gravely disproportionate," said the group's president, Ali Alhadithi.

The Ramadhan Foundation, a Muslim youth organization, said Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir should pardon the teacher. "The Ramadhan Foundation is disappointed and horrified by the conviction of Gillian Gibbons in Sudan," said spokesman Mohammed Shafiq. Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, spiritual leader of the world's 77 million Anglicans, said Gibbons' prosecution and conviction was "an absurdly disproportionate response to what is at worst a cultural faux pas." Foreign Secretary David Miliband summoned the Sudanese ambassador late Thursday to express Britain's disappointment with the verdict. The Foreign Office said Britain would continue diplomatic efforts to achieve "a swift resolution" to the crisis. Gibbons was arrested Sunday after another staff member at the school complained that she had allowed her 7-year-old students to name a teddy bear Muhammad. Giving the name of the Muslim prophet to an animal or a toy could be considered insulting. The case put Sudan's government in an embarrassing position — facing the anger of Britain on one side and potential trouble from powerful Islamic hard-liners on the other. Many saw the 15-day sentence as an attempt to appease both sides.

In The Times, columnist Bronwen Maddox said the verdict was "something of a fudge ... designed to give a nod to British reproof but also to appease the street." Britain's response — applying diplomatic pressure while extolling ties with Sudan and affirming respect for Islam — had produced mixed results, British commentators concluded. In an editorial, The Daily Telegraph said Miliband "has tiptoed around the case, avoiding a threat to cut aid and asserting that respect for Islam runs deep in Britain. Given that much of the government's financial support goes to the wretched refugees in Darfur and neighboring Chad, Mr. Miliband's caution is understandable." Now, however, the newspaper said, Britain should recall its ambassador in Khartoum and impose sanctions on the Sudanese regime. Advertisement

Question: What is the name of the teacher imprisoned in the Sudan for calling a teddy bear Mohammed?
Answer: Gillian Gibbons